1975 devon revamp - scampervan

Small update from last nite. Didn't do a great deal as was helping my mate get his mk1 caddy running again after 8months being off the road (kr 16v on r1 carbs) but I did get the rear arch trimmed to roughly the right dimensions



And a quick mock up with the centre sill panel



Once the inner rear arch is rebuilt then it should come together quickly I hope, well for this side anyway

 

It's been a while but finally done abit more to the bus

Remade the inner arch lip





And repaired the rot to the front of the tub



This involved cutting more of the floor out but the pics aren't uploading atm

 

Finally got the other pics uploaded

 

yes it has been a while ;D........glad to see your still on it

nice work on the inner arch

can I ask why you have made the little cut outs on the outer rear arch rather than cutting straight across? (thats the sort of thing I do ;D ;D)

 

Thanks Diddy.hopefully
Make some more progress this eve and get the inner arch finished and ready for the outter.ive only cut sections out of the outter so far as I'm not sure how far I'm takin the new panel up the old one yet but wanted to get at the rot.i think I will probably use the complete new panel though and replace asmuch of the old as possible

 

Couple more bits to tick off the list.

Made a repair panel to replace a shoddy part at the rear of the battery tray bit.no idea what it's called







New panel against old







And in place







I had planned to get the rear closing panel in this eve but I think I'm going to re-do the previous owners repair to the chassis leg. I also need to refit the rear section of the chassis leg that was already replaced as it isn't correctly aligned or even welded properly for that matter.

Previous repair. The patch looks to be welded over the original chassis rail do my guess is there will be some rot behind it





Dodgy welds, or lack of welds





And you can just about make out the difference in alignment of rear chassis legs. The drivers side sits 10mm lower than the passenger where it would weld to the rear crossmember.



I was unable to carry on with the rear chassis leg at this point so moved to the front of the arch. I don't think it is quite how it should be but it looks finished now atleast













That is all for now

 

Couple more bits to tick off the list.

Made a repair panel to replace a shoddy part at the rear of the battery tray bit.no idea what it's called







New panel against old







And in place







I had planned to get the rear closing panel in this eve but I think I'm going to re-do the previous owners repair to the chassis leg. I also need to refit the rear section of the chassis leg that was already replaced as it isn't correctly aligned or even welded properly for that matter.

Previous repair. The patch looks to be welded over the original chassis rail do my guess is there will be some rot behind it





Dodgy welds, or lack of welds





And you can just about make out the difference in alignment of rear chassis legs. The drivers side sits 10mm lower than the passenger where it would weld to the rear crossmember.



I was unable to carry on with the rear chassis leg at this point so moved to the front of the arch. I don't think it is quite how it should be but it looks finished now atleast













That is all for now

 

I can crack on once again I hope. I was up the workshop doing some welding on my mates clio 16v so thought while the welder was out, it would of been rude not to of done something to the camper while I was up there.

First I took a lot of measurements, then took a cutting disc to the rear chassis leg and jacked it up until I had it level. I just hope the opposite side was right



It was 10mm lower at the rear where it meets the cross member than the other side, which equated to this gap at the welded end



I took a few more measurements to double check then cranked up the heat on the welder and made it one again





Finally the rear crossmember fits and its straight





Next up remove and repair the previous repair to the rear chassis leg and finish the tub

 

Small update, cut out the previous repairs to the rear chassis leg and re-plated with 2mm steel. The piece I removed couldn't of been much thicker than 1mm at most



No between photos as I got carried away as you do, but here it is after



And then waxed inside the chassis leg asmuch as I could

 

Nice work dude. You look to be a touch in front of me but I have had to tip mine to get the resr chassis section done, I may as well do the rest of the accessible underside when shes over eh!

 

Coming along nicely.
It must be nice to be able to work inside in this weather. Mines just turning to rust at the moment.

 

Exuptoy - ive tried to get all the chassis repairs repairs completed before I crack on with the bodywork side of things. Just hope I've done them all well enough

 

Zebedee - working inside makes a big difference.although in the summer having the fan running used to blow the shield gas away lol

 

You can't have your cake and eat it.

 

Small progress.hopefully the last bit of welding to the rear tub before the outter arch goes on.







Any tips on fitting the outter arch? When I put the panel against the side of the bus it doesn't stay flat. Instead the panel "pops" out just infront and behind the arch lip?

 

nice progress, and nice work on the rear chassis leg

those rear arches are a pain, they dont seem to be pressed very well. There always seems to be a slight bulge to them in the middle which is barely percievable until you go to fit them!

have you trimmed the panel to size yet?

if you havent, consider putting a joddled edge on the panel and tuck that edge under the old outer skin. Then drill through both panels and use small self tapping screws to hold them both flush to each other......its a good technique to hold it all in place exactly where you need it, there are some pics on my thread.......some where ;D

the joddled edge will also give you a better weld and less chance of burning through

only thing I dont like about joddled edges it they leave a seam (inside out of site) which I worry could hold moisture. To combat this I'm going to be squirting loads of waxoyl in through the plugged holes which you can see on your inner arch

 

cheers diddy, i wasnt sure if the problem i have with the arch is because it has been sitting around for a while so might of twisted out of shape. i havent yet trimmed the arch to shape but i shall be doing this tomorrow eveing and hopefully get it fitted

 

Woo! Finally my panel has gone on that can be seen lol.

I wasn't too sure about fitting the outter arch but after lots of measuring, comparing to the otherside,fitting then removing of the panel, I finally welded got it fitted.

First I trimmed up the new panel and joddled the edge (no photos of this stage as forgot)

I then marked up where the edge would go and cut a further 10mm below this line to allow for the joddled edge to sit behind it.



Next was time to try the arch in place and check measurements. When I was finally happy with the alignment I screwed the panel into place to hold the panels tight



No going back now . . . . . . The first few tack welds went on, then I seamed the edge in lots of short bursts with the mig tryin not to put too much heat into the panel. This took abit of time



By this time it was almost midnight so was too late to start tidying up the welds so a good lashing of zinc primer will do for now





I still need to finish welding on the edges of the panel, attach the arch lips and where it meets the sill but this can wait for now.

And finally just a quick shot of how the inner lip fits in the outer. It's not perfect and looks a mess IMO but its solid and will be covered in stone chip.

 

Abit more from this eve.

With the rear arch now finished and welds ground back



Tried the front arch to check the b'pillar was the right shape and then made some repair panels for the rear of the front wheel tub.i bought the ready made panels from JK as thought it would save some time but they didnt fit at all so ended up just cutting them up and makin them fit in bits.



Welds still need grinding back but its all solid once more



Then back on with the arch to check alignment





All looking good so far. Then fitted the door to check the arch gap before I weld it in place.alignment is good although its got a massive gap at the bottom of the door step

And just for that bit more motivation my bro chucked the front panel on quickly



Next up, front arch and drivers side cab floor repairs

 

Nice going there mate, I think you'll find the new arches do leave a gap at the front of the door. When I fitted mine I tacked the arch in on at the B pillar then lifter the front of the arch up with a trolley jack to get it as high as possible, its not perfect but without cutting and re-welding the arch at the step don't think they ever are. Hope this helps.